Underneath It All
by Semi-Retired Writer
Summary: Oneshot. Underneath it all, Kaito was not a pervert and Aoko was not oblivious.
1. Kaito

**Underneath It All**

Kuroba Kaito was not a pervert.

He knew every girl in his class would describe him first and foremost as a pervert, and he understood that it seemed that way. After all, he was never hesitant to peep into a locker room here or flip a skirt there, and he wasn't exactly sneaky about either act.

He was the only one who knew, however, that he hadn't actually looked at even one other girl since he'd had to mature quickly starting the first night he had donned the famous cape and top hat. He was the only one who knew that he only truly cared for Aoko. Unfortunately for him, at the same time he'd matured enough to realize he needed to show Aoko his true feelings if he wanted a chance of keeping her around, he'd also adopted his father's enemies, threatening his own safety as well as that of all of his loved ones. Now, he knew he was doomed to never outwardly acknowledge his love of Aoko as long as his nighttime persona existed, and who knew how long he'd be forced to keep up that act.

To make things even worse, Kaito's first love hated half of who he was. Even if he could keep Aoko safe, he couldn't think of any way of telling her about his night job without making sure she was never willing to speak to him again. But even knowing this, Kaito knew there was no way he could move on and just forget how strongly his love for Aoko stung inside of him. How could he ever feel this way for anyone else? How could he believe the pain of his heart snapping into more pieces every day would ever disappear?

With no other option, Kaito felt he had to keep up the way he acted before he discovered his father's secret past. After all, if those enemies of his father realized the current KID was someone younger, they'd immediately look into students whose behavior changed soon after the day of KID's return; it wasn't safe to change how he acted anymore. So day after day, Kaito continued the same old tricks—with a few new ones—but without the same fun and whimsy he'd once enjoyed. Nobody knew that Kaito didn't even pay attention anymore. To anyone else, Kaito seemed the same as ever.

Inside was different. Kaito could feel the difference that he knew no one else could see. Although he kept up his excitable personality on the outside, he felt like he was trudging through each slow day, becoming lonelier by the minute. He had to admit to himself, though, that everything felt like it used to each time he had a chance to tease Aoko; he felt alive and purposeful again.

On the flip side to how he felt during the day, KID felt energetic and full of purpose on heist nights. This was when Kaito finally felt like he was making progress on getting back to the normal life that he wanted. Every heist was another chance to find the right jewel and end all of his major problems. Every heist was accompanied by a silent prayer that he'd finally have his chance to show Aoko how he really felt and to be able to treat her the way he really wanted to rather than acting as her pervy classmate.

Immediately after every heist was the worst for Kaito. Each gem was yet another failure, another lost chance, another unanswered prayer. The aftermath was often spent just lying on his bed for hours until he could work up enough hope to start his scheme for the next heist.

Each day that passed, Kaito felt the divide between himself and Aoko widening marginally, and the worst part about it was that he couldn't afford to show his enemies that he cared enough to even ask her if she felt the same chasm that he did. Instead, he flipped a skirt, named off a color, and jumped away, avoiding any meaningful conversation for yet another day.

Underneath it all, Kuroba Kaito was a best friend who just wanted life to be simple enough to allow him to openly love Nakamori Aoko. But for now, he was willing to accept the label "pervert." It was better than nothing, after all.


	2. Aoko

**Underneath It All**

Nakamori Aoko was not oblivious.

She's known Kuroba Kaito since they were both young children, and they've grown closer than most people over that time. Everyone who knew both of them would call them oblivious to the relationship right in front of them, and she understood that it seemed that way. After all, she'd long ago stopped trying to get him to go on dates with her or even spend friendly time together at one of their houses after class, and this didn't go unnoticed by their classmates and family.

She was the only one who felt, however, the great chasm that had developed since the criminal Kaitou KID had returned, making Aoko angry at him and Kaito excited to watch him. She'd tried a few times after that to keep up their kinda-friends-kinda-interested relationship, but she could tell Kaito wasn't as interested as he had once been, and if she was honest, she found him a little less appealing once she realized he was a KID supporter. Unfortunately for her, even when she thought she could let their difference of opinion go, there was still the issue of Kaito seeming to push away from her.

To make things worse, Aoko couldn't even find a reason for him to be acting like this. If they just weren't right for each other, she could understand and would be happy to stay close friends, but Kaito seemingly had no other interests. Even Koizumi Akako, who everyone found attractive, seemed to hold no appeal for her friend. Maybe if Kaito would just move on and be with some other girl, Aoko could start to emotionally heal, but Kaito didn't have someone else who was better than her… she just wasn't good enough for him. Aoko hated how strong her feelings were, how painful the pulls at her heart were every time she saw him, and how desperate she felt to find a way to make him accept her feelings. She was afraid, above all else. After all, how could she ever get over her first love? How could she just find someone else who made her heart feel like it was beating the rhythm to some unknown song, someone who made her breath hard to catch with just one look?

With no other option, Aoko had to pretend that the chasm didn't exist, that there was no difference in their relationship over the past few months. After all, maybe if she kept pretending everything was alright, Kaito would at least keep up a friendly, if slightly distant, relationship with her. Maybe if she ignored the way he was pulling away, he wouldn't think she was too clingy and pull away even faster. Maybe it was a little pathetic, but even now, Kaito still feels like her best and only real friend. She has classmates who would wish her a happy birthday or have a polite conversation with her, but no one else has been there for her during the hard times, like when her father thought he was going to be laid off or when everyone else forgot her birthday one year. She couldn't imagine living life without someone like that. Nobody knew that Aoko was desperate to keep up even the smallest friendship with Kaito. To everyone else, they seemed as friendly and oblivious to each other's love as ever.

Inside was different. Even though Aoko still acted the same on the outside, it was a different story in her own personal world. Whereas it used to be easy to get through even her hard days, now every day felt like an agonizingly slow but steady race toward permanent loneliness. She had to admit, though, that every normal interaction with Kaito let her forget how she felt, tricked her into thinking things were back to the way they used to be. All would be well again…and then he'd pull away and sink into his own inner world.

She'd never tell anyone, but her nights were completely different from her days. With a police officer as her father and a mother long gone, she had a lot of time to spend alone now that Kaito didn't want to hang out with her. Almost every night, she'd get home and head for her laptop, looking up such seemingly stereotypical teenage queries. _How to get a guy to notice you. How to get him to make a move. How to make friends._ The searches would go on and on, and she'd read every article, giving serious consideration to each tip and deciding which ones she could try in the morning. Every search was a ray of hope in her pitch dark world, but at the same time, it was an embarrassing weight, something she'd be sure to never mention to anyone, no matter how close they were to her. Every search was a chance to win back her friend.

She'd usually fall asleep with her laptop still open, in the middle of an article or a how-to guide. As soon as she woke up, she'd realize how she'd spent the night once again, and shame would crush her for just a few minutes. Each tip was yet another failure, another moment of Kaito drifting further away, another disappointment for her. She tried not to let it get to her at school. After all, many of the articles reminded her not to be too needy or depressing to be around; that would only scare away her target. So she'd push the feelings to the back of her mind, leaving them to deal with when she got home that night and started the process again.

Each day that passed, Aoko felt the chasm. She felt it constantly moving, always wider and wider, never even a small budge toward mending the relationship. The worst part was that she had to be careful not to scare him away. If the articles were right, a conversation that serious could turn him away from her for good, and she couldn't live like that. A strained but existent relationship was better than none at all. So every day, she went along with his pranks even though they had no feeling in them, took every chance he offered to spend time together or talk, and tried to act like the kind of person worthy of being with Kaito.

Underneath it all, Nakamori Aoko was still Kuroba Kaito's best friend, and she just wanted life to be simple enough to allow her to stay with him and become closer, even if it took awhile. But for now, she was willing to take whatever relationship she could get. Even just being able to talk to him sometimes was better than nothing, after all.


End file.
